LONDON — Eight hundred years separate medieval historian Stephen Spencer and his current topic of interest, the Third Crusade.
Such a span could well present a challenge in uncovering fresh sources to shed new light on the period between 1189-1192, when King Richard I of England and King Philip II of France teamed up to attempt to recapture Jerusalem from Islamic rule.
But after a few hours painstakingly going through the ornately handwritten Latin in the weighty chronicle in front of him, Spencer thinks he may have found an account overlooked by historians of the crusades for centuries.
The Northeastern University researcher, in preparation for his forthcoming book, “Rewriting the Third Crusade,” has been granted access by Lambeth Palace Library in London to Ralph of Diss’s “Imagines,” a historical account written in the late 12th century that covers events between 1180-1202.
Spencer believes the work by the former dean of St Paul’s Cathedral in London has been potentially unfairly marginalized by those studying the events of the Third Crusade.
